Drill recomendations

[66benchcoupe]

I've owned a few cordless drills. The first I bought was a Ryobi 14.4v and it took a lot of abuse and worked great for 5 years, until the batteries died. Went to a RIGID 19v kit and it lasted maybe 3 years before the both batteries died, on the same day! My Grandfather gave me an older 19.2v Craftsman like you pictured (lots of torque!) and one of the batteries has failed, I guess its 5 or 6 years old. I'll probably buy another Craftsman tool to get another battery. I also have a DeWalt XRP 14.4v and its going on 4 years now. The 14.4v DeWalt is quite a workhorse and lighter than the 18v version, which is nice if you're doing a lot of screws. When I used it to install a deck a few years ago I could screw around 250 3" #8 screws with it until the battery went. Both the DeWalt batteries are still working.

Makita makes a good drill but the grip is weak near the battery and can break if you drop it. But I think Makita uses Nimh batteries, which are the best. I've used the Milwaukee drills from 14-26v and they're OK. An impact is nice to have and everyone seems to offer one now. When I was working as a Millwright, we assembled a 200 ft oven with thousands of 5/16" and 3/8" fasteners and did it all with 12v Makita impacts.

If you're leaning towards the 18v DeWalt because of the hammer drill function, don't use it as a hammer drill too much because it will tear up the drill. Get a dedicated hammer drill if you need to do a lot of holes in concrete and brick larger than 1/4". Unfortunately, the 14.4v DeWalt (which I'd recommend) runs about $200 just for the drill. But you can get one of the 18v XRP kits for just a bit more. . .

If you want a heavy duty 1/2" corded drill, get a Milwaukee!

Robert

 

[jims6t6]

! My Grandfather gave me an older 19.2v Craftsman like you pictured (lots of torque!) and one of the batteries has failed, I guess its 5 or 6 years old. I'll probably buy another Craftsman tool to get another battery.

You can get replacement batteries at Batteries Plus and Master Battery.

 

[66benchcoupe]

You can get replacement batteries at Batteries Plus and Master Battery.

Batteries Plus didn't list it but it looks like Master Battery can rebuild them. If it's cheaper than a new battery I might try 'em. I think Sears wants $60-70 for a new one so I thought if I was going to bite the bullet then I should get a new tool too! I miss my RIGID cordless sawzall. . .

Thanks for the tip!

Robert

 

[DB65]

I like the 18V Ryboi I picked up under $90 on sale at Home Depot a couple years ago. It came with 2 batteries. Recharges quickly and runs a long time on each charge. I've noticed quite a few pros using the same drill in our area.

 

[Dennis Harrelson]

Another vote for DeWalt XRP. Check out toolking.com for factory refurbished.

 

[Shaun]

So my cordless drill died recently. Add it to the list of failures during my EFI swap.
I have had it for maybe 15 years. My wife bought me a new one from sears, but I'm not sure if It's what I want. Here's what she got me.

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-17191-19 ... ockType=G1


What do you all look for in a cordless drill? Any suggestions. :shrug

I've had 2 of those. First one lastest a few years, second one lastest less than a year. I use it pretty much every day though for chasing threads on parts during assembly. After the second one died I replaced it with a DeWalt cordless. I like their stuff.

 

[Havok1]

When I replaced my Craftsman set a couple years ago, I ended up going with a Hitachi cordless drill, impact driver and flashlight set. Like you I was looking for something a little less expensive than the Dewalt but just as reliable and with a lithium ion battery. I've been very pleased with them. They both have a led guide light which I helps tremendously when working in tight dark areas. And the impact driver will make you wonder what you did without one.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_306201-67702-KC18DHL_4294707836__?productId=3056415&Ns=p_product_avg_rating|1

This is above the $150 you were hoping to stay under, but for lithium ion, this set is well worth it. Plus you can probably catch it on sale or google search to find a bit cheaper.